


Idiosyncrasy

by mandaree1



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Backwards Speech, Blood, Borderline Corruption, Cracked Gems, Healing, Hurt/Comfort, No One Dies Promise, Scars, Vomiting, Wounds
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-22
Updated: 2018-04-03
Packaged: 2019-04-06 15:02:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,787
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14059506
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mandaree1/pseuds/mandaree1
Summary: When Smoky is injured on a solo mission, the entire team gets a lesson on what it means to be human and Gem.





	1. Whoopsie-Daisy!

The craggy walls of the canyon provided Steven with more fun than he originally expected as he hopped down them on his shield, riding the bumps like a twisted sleigh ride. Amethyst's signature dash dug into the stone, sending grit up and around that stung his skin. Steven laughed through the ache, then yelled, hitting a spot that sent him flying high.

Amethyst untucked herself and held out her arms, catching the shield before he could suffer an unfortunate accident. "Heeeey, you cheated!"

"I didn't cheat!" he defended, smiling ear to ear. "It was a tie."

The Gem's grin seems to only stretch wider. "You wanna go now, or wait until we're closer?"

"Are you kidding?" Steven asked. "Climbing sucks with short legs. Let's fuse!"

They pressed their foreheads together.

Though four arms undoubtedly would've been better, three prove to be pretty darn good too. Smoky hums a little tune under their breath as they climb, feeling the crumbly red-ish brown rock break and fall under their fingers. They briefly consider sending up a yo-yo, but aren't aware of any place to hitch it to, and playing blind Gem's bluff wasn't particularly appealing.

Smoky pulled themselves up and over, landing on their back. Dust clung to them like honey, smearing when they reached up to scratch their cheek. "Well, at least we made it." They stared out at the plateau, silent. The air was cool, but the lack of serious clouds made it so the sun was pressing uncomfortably into their skin. "No worries about sneaking up, huh?"

They stood.

"Guess we should get looking."

The Quartz took big steps, kicking their feet out, as they wandered in what could best be described as a meander. They weren't in the mood to be rushed, and it wasn't like the corruption had any plans either. Smoky found they quite enjoyed the silence, despite it being against their individual parts' natures. They didn't have to think when no one was asking questions. They didn't have to feel if there was no immediate problems. They could just... walk. Or jump, as was the case with the deep crevice they found a little ways in, clearing it without any real issue.

It was about midday when the first shreds of corruption came to them. Scratch marks etched deeply into the rock, marking the territory of the critter, or so they suspected. Smoky summoned a yo-yo and moved on.

 _Then_  they wrinkled their nose. "Huh. Salt."

 _Then_  they heard the shrieking.

It was with great confusion that Smoky found the kraken; because that was what it was. A kraken. The squid-like figure lacked any noticeable eyes or bumps- a smooth, simple shape, with long and gnarled legs. It flopped onto its side as they approached, showing off a feeble beak that Smoky didn't think could even wrap around their pinkie finger.

Smoky watched it wriggle for a bit, then glanced around. "How didja get out here, buddy?" They crouched a little to make it feel safer, voice soft. "Were you... all alone out here when it happened? Or did your friends run away?"

It squirmed, unable to answer. Smoky hesitantly looked at their yo-yo, vanishing it in an instant. "Hey, hey, dude, it's chill. We're fine." They reached a hand out to gently pet it. The kraken stiffened. "I'm here to help."

The kraken gave a mighty jerk. Smoky's eyes shrunk to pinpricks.

There was an ugly squishing sound, and then a sharp bone-colored edge was thrust through their stomach, just barely scraping the edge of Steven's gemstone. Black goo sprayed everywhere as Smoky gurgled, unable to cry out.

The kraken jumped back. The skin around its tentacles slithered back, revealing bony appendages it used like the legs of a spider. One hiss and it was gone, fleeing for safety. Smoky, too terrified to think straight, pressed a hand to the wound and stumbled in the opposite direction.

"We should..." they started, then shook their head. "No. This won't get any better if we're separate. You'll poof." Smoky drew their hand away, finding it covered in the oily fluid. "Is this...  _old_  blood? But... how does that even work? Old blood dries, it doesn't..."

They didn't have time for this. Smoky shook their clouded mind out of it and kept walking. "We gotta get to the warp pad. From there we can... we can..." their voice broke. "Rose's Fountain! We- we can  _totally_  get fixed at Rose's Fountain. It's... it's gonna be okay. Just... just keep your eyes on the horizon, Smoky."

The fusion moved at a snail's pace. Likewise, the blood seemed much thicker than what the ordinary human had, oozing and gushing at odd intervals. It clung to their form, sticking onto and staining everything it touched. Their boots slipped and slid on it.

Smoky didn't remember the cliff. They only remembered the cracking of thin rubble under them, signaling they were about to go down, down, down, smacking their chest and stomach and back and- well, basically everything.

They hit the ground with a sinister  _crunch_!

Smoky propped themselves up on their elbows, shaking head to toe. They opened their mouth to speak, but all that came out was a garbled noise like that of a malfunctioning TV. Their stomach dropped at the familiar sound.

_We're cracked!_

Trembling, they reached a hand down to inspect the circle in their chest, finding a decently-sized crease. They checked further down, and an even greater horror set in when Smoky realized their belly stone was missing a piece.

_Not just cracked- chipped._

They licked their hand, desperately hopeful, but all that came out was more old blood. They choked on it, spewing the rocks in its ugly color. Smoky stood and stumbled away, a hand on each wall. It narrowed more and more as they went on, eventually coming out into a wedge shape.

They reared back and slammed their fist into the wall, sending a shower of gravel down. They crawled into the hole they'd made and slumped, feeling decently safe for the moment. Smoky didn't think they could move much further. Another spasm shook their form, agony the kind of which they'd never known before.

"Pu tilps ot deen ew," they gurgled, but still found themselves resisting. "Dekcarc er'uoy. deppihc m'I. Tniop on s'ereht." Smoky curled up into a ball. "Enola eb ot evah t'now ew, yaw siht, tsael ta."


	2. Rose's Fountain

Connie's fingers tightened around the handle of her sword as she followed quietly behind Pearl and Garnet. Usually, it was an honor to go on a mission. A search mission isn't an honor. It's a necessity. Connie squinted against the weak sunlight, hoping she could spot something in the distance, but it all proved to be as flat as a plateau could be. Wherever Steven and Amethyst had gone, it wasn't nearby.

"We should've come sooner," Pearl said, hand cupping her chin. Her entire demeanor had become frazzled after their disappearance. "What were we thinking, waiting until morning?"

Garnet was relatively calmer on the surface, but Connie noticed her hands had yet to unfurl from the tight fists they'd become almost an hour prior. "The darkness would've hindered us."

"I _told_  you we should've gone after them before sunset!"

"They've been late returning before," she replied. "There was no way to be sure."

Connie jumped a little when a muzzle firmly jabbed her in the back. Lion herded her away from the bickering Gems with a low growling noise. Clearly displeased with how slow they were taking things, he ducked down and all but yanked her on, standing up and galloping away. Connie yelped and grabbed handfuls of his mane. If Pearl and Garnet noticed them wandering off on their own, neither of them called out.

Lion stopped and ducked his nose to the ground, snuffling like a bloodhound, then went right back to it, hopping down a rock face and right back up. Connie's nose wrinkled with disgust as they came across smears of black liquid. She hoped it wasn't poisonous. Her stomach dropped out as the pink cat hopped over a chasm. She squeezed his sides tight and hoped Lion knew what he was doing. He usually did.

A loud screeching had Connie drawing her sword before she even realized she was doing it. Somewhere, in the not-terrified part of her mind, Connie realized how awesome this all was- weapon drawn and proudly facing an enemy attacker, astride a lion no less!- but in the forefront all she knew was that it was very,  _very_  easy for a kid her size to get hurt by a corruption. How hard it was to swing said sword without hurting Lion. How much easier this was as Stevonnie, when they could reach higher up and jump higher and flutter.

The kraken skittered out of a crack, hissing with rage. Thankfully, it didn't seem interested in attacking, only staring the girl and lion down a moment before scrambling away, but it also confirmed a few unfortunate suspicions. Not only were Steven and Amethyst missing, but they hadn't completed their mission.

Connie leaned over a bit to speak closer to Lion's ear. "That was a really weird creature, huh? It almost looked like it walked with its  _bones_." Lion huffed in agreement. He pressed his nose to the stone and took a whiff, then doubled back from whence he came. "Whoa, whoa, buddy. We just went this way."

The look the lion shot Connie told her he was  _very_  aware of that, thank you. Connie zipped her mouth shut and let him concentrate, sliding her sword back into its scabbard.

Lion made his way back over to the chasm. He pawed at the edge a moment, unsure, before finally making up his mind and roaring. Connie held fast as they traveled through the portal, coming out at the bottom. Shadows blanketed them, leaving a layer of cold air on her overheated skin. He shook, signaling for her to get off him. Connie's boots met the ground with a wet squish sound.

"Blech," she said, cringing at the black goo on her heel. "It's only getting worse."

Lion didn't seem to notice. Or, if he did, he didn't try to wash his paws as they got more and more covered. His hackles prickled, claws slithering out just a little, and Connie grabbed her sword handle again, squeezing it nervously. There was no way she could hope to out-fight something in a place this cramped.

The crevice became more and more narrow as they went on, forcing themselves to move single-file. Had Connie stayed on Lion's back, her legs would have been scraped terribly. The animal forced her to take the lead, steadily trotting behind her.

Connie's breath caught in her throat.

At the very end of the path was Smoky, curled up in a hole just big enough for them to hide in. The black tar was smeared all over them- their hands, their boots, their hair- not even the back of their shirt had survived unscathed. The source of the flow was a sluggishly gushing hole in their belly, just beside Steven's gemstone. Amethyst's stone was cracked. Steven's was worse.

"Oh no," she whispered. "That black stuff. It's... it's  _blood_."

Connie jerked away from the scene and dry-heaved into her hand.

Smoky's one visible eye opened. "Einnoc?"

She gulped air before answering, trying to settle her stomach a bit. "Yeah, it's me. I'm here now. You're gonna be okay." Connie had the sense of mind to turn to Lion. "Go get Pearl and Garnet. They'll know what to do."

Lion nodded and awkwardly twisted around to portal away.

Smoky held one of their hands out. "Og t'nod," they slurred. Blood bubbled past their lips as they spoke. "Deracs er'ew."

Connie reached out and intertwined their fingers. She noticed, belatedly, that one of Smoky's eyes lacked a pupil. "Help will be here soon," she said, trying her best to seem even slightly put together. She was shaking just as hard as the fusion was. "Just...  _please_  don't die, okay?"

The fusion didn't seem to understand. They grabbed her other hand and moved it toward an air bubble in the puddle of goo nearest to her, sinking her fingers inside. Connie choked back stomach acid, suddenly grateful she'd been too nervous to eat beforehand. Something small and hard brushed her fingers. She fished it out with some difficulty, rubbing the object on her shirt to clean it.

It was a tiny pink shard.

This time, she  _did_  throw up.

* * *

Pearl cried. Whimpers slipped out between her fingers as she crouched by Smoky's side, reaching out to tangle her fingers in Smoky's hair. "Oh, I knew something was wrong. I should've been here." She choked on the words. "I'm so sorry."

"Raep ylraep, enif s'ti," they told her, leaning into the touch. "Emoh og tsuj s'tel. Won gnol eb t'now ti."

Garnet put a hand on Pearl and Connie's shoulders, gathering their attention. Her fingers dug in. "Get them to the fountain. I'll be along shortly."

Pearl's eyes went wide with disbelief. "Where are you going?"

She scowled, thinking over her words carefully. "Can't let that corruption keep wandering around here. It's willing to attack somethin' bigger than it- there's no telling what it'd do to a human."

"You'd rather worry about that than this?"

"Get them to the fountain," she repeated flatly. "Trust me. You don't want to be here when I finish the mission."

Connie's insides turned to ice.  _Is she going to shatter it?_  The girl wouldn't put it past the fusion in the slightest. She'd seen her angry before. It's not pretty. "We can handle it, ma'am," she responded, hoping to head an argument off at the pass.

Garnet nodded and withdrew. Pearl's lips quirked at being spoken for, but ultimately it was a bad time for any of this, so they all reluctantly saved their emotional glitches for later.

Connie was undeniably the weakest there, if only because she was the only human, and she felt immensely grateful when Lion bent down to brace her as they dragged Smoky's injured form out from the hole they'd made. Smoky was too weak to fight back, though they did jerk a little at the first touch, displeased. After some time, Pearl and Connie both had an arm each, carefully edging down the wedge.

"Hsur eht s'tahw, yeh?" Smoky said, then gagged and spat out some black goo. "Ll'ay, siht ot pu er'ew kniht t'nod I, yob oooh."

"Do you think there's internal damage, ma'am?" Connie asked. "They keep spitting and coughing up blood."

"Probably, but that's not what's going on, I don't think." Pearl's nose wrinkled, blue eyes shimmering. "When Amethyst cracked her gem, she spoke backwards, like now. Steven's never hurt himself before, but this makes as much sense as anything else."

"Ma'am?"

"They're trying to heal themselves, Connie. With healing spit."

"Oh. But... are we even sure Smoky  _has_  that power?"

She shook her head. "Injured Gems don't think like that. Smoky remembers spitting to feel better, so they're spitting."

"Wonk uoy, uoy raeh nac I."

It took nothing less than a miracle to scale the cliff and get back up to the plateau. Smoky did their best to help, of course, but between their injury, the slippery blood all over their hands and clothes, it was a bit like climbing with an extremely valuable bar of soap. Connie grit her teeth and prayed they wouldn't all fall down like some messed up version of Humpty Dumpty. But finally they got back up there, the human covered in sweat, Pearl black goo, and Lion a combination of both.

"Are you okay?" Pearl asked quietly.

"I think I popped my shoulder," Connie admitted, shaking it out. There'd be time to put it in place later. "But I can still help, ma'am."

* * *

Rose's Fountain is a gorgeous sight that, on any other day, Connie would've been quietly in awe of. There's a mystical quality to the air that doesn't dissipate, no matter how many times she's been there. That doesn't change even as they drag the mutilated fusion of her best friend and one of his mother figures, dropping them into the water with grunts of effort.

A film of dark gray, light black swirled around the surface, covering the fountain. Connie stepped back.

The water bubbled near the edge a millisecond before Amethyst burst out of it, coughing and hacking up a storm. Pearl let out a cry of relief, moving to help her out, but the purple Gem quickly waved for her to stay there. She inhaled, exhaled, and then puked up more blood than Connie had ever had the displeasure of seeing.

"I'm okay," she wheezed. Pearl, in a brave show of solidarity, had moved over regardless of the mess, rubbing circles into her back. "It's not- I'm just full of it from fusing. It's not actual hurting-blood."

"Amethyst," Pearl prodded. "Where's Steven?"

"Wahuh?"

The purple Gem glanced around, finding herself alone at the bank. She frowned and ducked into the water without even a goodbye, Pearl yelling for her to wait. She returned with a small pink bubble, filled to the brim with healing water, Steven sequestered inside.

"I think he's missing something." She tapped the surface. "I mean, it felt that way when we un-fused."

Connie swallowed. She retrieving the shard from her pocket with shaking fingers, the merest touch enough to make her nauseous all over again. It hadn't felt right to just leave it there. "Maybe this'll do it?"

Pearl's eyes grew wet all over again. Amethyst looked away, heaving again.

"Just... do it, Connie," her mentor said, thumb massaging the Quartz's shoulder.

Connie hesitantly held the shard out. The bubble reacted to it, the pink surface stretching out in tiny fingers. It took the piece from her hand with a surprising gentleness, returning to its original form without delay. Connie watching unblinkingly as it floated to his belly, melting back into place like dough.

It popped, splashing water in all directions. Steven hit the stone with his hands out, just barely saving himself a bump to the noggin. He hacked and coughed, though- thankfully- nothing came up.

"Ugh." His voice was weak. "Why do I feel like I just died?"

"Less talk," Amethyst grunted back. "More hacking up a lung."

* * *

"Pearl, I love hugs as much as the next girl, but it's getting kind of hard to move."

Pearl's response was to pick the gem up, cradling her in one arm and Steven in the other.

"Okay, that's sort of better?"

Garnet is waiting for them at the Temple when they return, every muscle bunched up tightly. In her hands is what they all assume is the kraken's gemstone, bubbled. She stood up and handed it off to Steven.

"This isn't my choice to make," she growled. "My emotions are blinding me to the logical solution."

Steven tapped the top, sending it away. "It was just defending itself."

Amethyst burped, grimacing. "Defending or not, this is one experience I'd rather  _not_  repeat."

"Ditto," Connie said, wiping her cheeks. They felt sandy and dry. Garnet grabbed her by the arm and pulled them all in for a hug.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoo! Only one chapter left, ya'll! This is definitely the longest chapter. But, hey, everyone's healed now! Hugs happened!
> 
> -Mandaree1


	3. Hot Springs

Amethyst hopped into the spring with a hoot, phasing her clothes off halfway into the swing. Pearl hovered until she popped out, then slid in as well, breathing a sigh of relief.

She laughed a little. "You act like I'm gonna disappear, P."

Her hand shot out, rumpling her wet locks. "Don't even joke about that!"

Garnet didn't so much as sink as she  _walked_  into the hot spring, stiff as a board. To the fusion, the water felt lukewarm at best. "It was a scary time," she noted. "We were all worried."

Amethyst blew a raspberry. "Smoky's tougher'n some  _calamari_."

The fusion reached out and poked her belly, face blank. "That little line says otherwise."

"Oh, you noticed that too?" Pearl prompted. "I thought it was a fitting little tribute, personally."

The Quartz's eyes darted between the two of them. "'Scuse me?"

"Don't play coy," the thin Gem scolded, tapping her nose playfully. "That mark on your stomach."

"Huh?" Amethyst pulled herself out onto the side of the hot spring, splashing water everywhere. Her long hair stuck to her arms as she inspected her belly. Sure enough, just above the overhanging lip of fat, a jagged purple line cut across where a belly button would normally be on a human. "What the fu-"

"Amethyst! Language!"

Light overtook the small Gem's form as she tried to shapeshift it away. It didn't work. Increasingly panicked, Amethyst stared at Garnet almost desperately. "G, I-I didn't do this. I  _swear_  I didn't." She dug her elbow into the area, as if it were grime to be brushed away. Her voice began to crack. "It won't come off!"

Garnet grabbed her wrist. "Don't do that! You'll hurt yourself."

Amethyst bit down on her lip, scared. "What's wrong with me? Am I corrupting?"

"Corruption doesn't work like that. This is just... what's the word..." Pearl racked her brains. "Oh, I know! A  _scar._  Humans call them scars."

"Gems don't scar,  _Pearl_."

She crossed her arms to protect herself from the scorn in the Quartz's voice. "Well, you weren't exactly a Gem when you were healed, now, were you?"

"I mean, yeah, but..." Amethyst ran her index finger over it, frowning. She didn't mind having a different look- a shapeshifter by nature, Amethyst was happiest when she could try new things and break away from being herself for a bit. But there had never been a time when those changes were outside her control. Cracking her Gem the first time had scrambled her, but once it was fixed up she hadn't had any issues. A scar was something permanent- or, at least, something long-lasting, depending on how deep it was, and the kraken had stabbed clean through. "That's not how we're supposed to work."

"It's not," Garnet agreed, putting a supportive hand on her arm. "But Steven is different. _You're_  different. Neither of you are bound by typical Gem standards."

Pearl raised her index finger. "It's not like we hadn't expected some drawbacks to fusing with a half-human. If weird lines are the worst of it, that doesn't sound so bad, does it?"

She slowly lifted her hand away, frowning. "I guess not."

When they get home, Amethyst shows it off. Steven waits until Pearl and Garnet have left the room to lift his shirt slightly and display his, edging ever-so-close to his gemstone. The smile on his face is an odd mix of proud, ashamed, and a little wigged out. Amethyst mirrors it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finally got around to finishing this! =) But, hey, Amethyst's is the first Gem with a scar! That's pretty neat.
> 
> Not a lot changed in this story, actually. I did originally intend for Smoky to be more volatile when Connie found them, but it didn't quite work out.
> 
> -Mandaree1

**Author's Note:**

> Wow, I can't believe I'm finally getting around to this. I've had the idea for like a year now.
> 
> The idea of old blood coming from a Steven fusion is mostly centered around that a Gem is ancient, and they don't bleed, but if they did their blood would be as ancient as the stars. Also it's a more cartoon-y spin on blood- black goo, I mean.
> 
> (This is gonna be a three-parter, with the middle being the more bulky part and the third being a short little ending type dealio)
> 
> -Mandaree1


End file.
